ART CITIES:Milan-Jannis Kounellis
For the 20th anniversary of the death of Heiner Müller, the Jannis Kounellis and the director Theodoros Terzopoulos, both friends and collaborators of the German playwright and poet, worked together on a theater project to pay homage to the figure and work of what was defined, in the nineties, “The greatest living playwright”.
By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Galleria Fumagalli Archive
Described as “the theatre’s greatest living poet” since Samuel Beckett, Heiner Müller is arguably the most important German dramatist of the 20th Century after Bertolt Brecht. Galleria Fumagalli presents part of the installation conceived by Jannis Kounellis for Il Piccolo Teatro d’Europa in Milan and the video projection of the performance “Jannis Kounnellis, Theodoros Terzopoulos. Die Hamletmaschine by Heiner Müller”, curated by Annamaria Maggi and Alexandra Papadopulos. “Die Hamletmaschine” is a postmodern drama (a set of 5 monologues in 5 acts that takes the Shakespearean drama Hamlet as its point of departure, with the characters of Hamlet and Ophelia exploring their roles in the classic drama and discovering their new identities and purposes. Hamlet transcends his historical role, coming to terms with his historical struggle and attempting to define himself as a modern existential being. Ophelia does the same. Her character encompasses all women, and rejects oppression and subjugation. The playwright created stage directions that were intentionally difficult or unrealizable. A new character, the Narrator, was created that interjects the stage directions and comments on the drama. Kounellis has thought of an Hamlet “With the back to the ruins of Europe” for an installation at the same time personal and social, against corruption and power. For this new performance Terzopoulos has selected excerpts from “Die Hamletmaschine” taking shape in the feminine voice of the actress Sofia Hill, the live electronic music of Panagiotis Velianitis and the male voice of the director.
Info: Galleria Fumagalli, Via Bonaventura Cavalieri 6, Milan, Duration 13/10-20/12/16, Days & Hours: Tue-Sat 11:00-21:00, http://galleriafumagalli.com